A site complex featuring rock art and Middle-to-Upper-Palaeolithic deposits. First data from Cueva del Arco, Cieza, Spain

Abstract

The southern Iberian Peninsula is a key area for understanding the timing and patterns of the Middle-to-Upper Palaeolithic transition. Recently, the excavation and study of new sites has provided new insights on this topic. The aim of this paper is to introduce Cueva del Arco, a complex site featuring distinct caves and rock shelters. Cueva del Arco is located at short distance from the Almadenes gorge (Cieza, Spain) and preserves both Middle and Upper Palaeolithic deposits and assemblages, as well as rock art. Despite being known since the 1990s for its Palaeolithic rock art, systematic fieldwork was never undertaken at the site until recently. We here report the first results of a research programme that includes the systematic excavation of several cavities belonging to the Cueva del Arco complex, focusing on the location and context of the site, its stratigraphy and chronology, and site formation. Research at the site is still ongoing, but preliminary results suggest that the data from Cueva del Arco will provide new clues to the current debate on the transition from Neanderthals to anatomically modern humans in Southern Europe.